Freshly uncovered idea artwork for Captain America: Courageous New World reveals that The Leader practically had a much more terrifying design. Identified for his towering mind and signature inexperienced hue, the longtime Hulk villain returned to the MCU with a little bit of a whimper this February. Whereas not canon to the MCU, here is an in-depth have a look at a number of designs of Samuel Sterns, performed by Tim Blake Nelson. 

The Leader returned to the MCU practically twenty years after his debut in The Unbelievable Hulk, with Nelson reprising his function as Dr. Samuel Sterns 17 years later. Whereas followers anticipated a comic-accurate design, Sterns’s remaining look in Captain America: Courageous New World was a transparent departure. It was subtler and extra grounded than his outsized, mutated comedian counterpart, which was altered throughout manufacturing. 

Within the movie, Sterns is unmasked because the mastermind behind thoughts management experiments and a worldwide battle tied to stolen adamantium. After escaping from the key Camp Echo One facility, he devises a plan to publicly discredit President Ross (Harrison Ford), who had exploited and imprisoned him for years.

Regardless of his puppet-mastery within the movie, resulting in the Crimson Hulk explosion and the following battle towards Anthony Mackie’s Captain America, many comics followers have been let down by the portrayal. New glimpses at what The Leader might’ve seemed like point out a a lot scarier model would’ve been in retailer. 

This model options The Leader with basic inexperienced pores and skin, a large skull, sharp eyebrows, a full head of hair, and a sinister mustache, giving him an unsettling, virtually devilish presence.

These 4 variants exaggerate the scale of his neck and head to grotesque ranges, with one sporting a robotic headpiece and others trying like their brains are on the verge of bursting by means of the cranium.

Extraordinarily skinny and alien-like, this design exposes the liner of his mind by means of his pores and skin, creating an eerie, otherworldly look.

With wires embedded right into a semi-mechanical cranium, facial hair, and a mohawk-style hairdo, this model evokes severe Brainiac vibes from DC Comics.

These designs lean closely into retro sci-fi horror, with monumental heads lined in wires and a multi-faceted outfit that makes him really feel extra like a terrifying superweapon than a person.

This take goes excessive with a hilariously outsized head and a ghastly grey tone, making it appear to be his cranium may actually cut up open.

One other gray-skinned variant, this model’s lopsided mind bulge on the left aspect provides him a disturbingly unnatural, virtually deformed high quality.

On this design, The Leader’s pores and skin is a vibrant inexperienced, however his elongated, bulbous brow dwarfs his shrunken facial options, amplifying his creep issue.

These new appears to be like add to the “What Ifs” in terms of The Leader, together with doubtlessly having totally different talents. From the identical artwork ebook, Marvel initially thought of rather more terrifying variations of The Leader, together with a brain-sucking tentacle impressed by The Factor and The Immortal Hulk comics. 

Artist Ian Joyner shared that Marvel finally selected to reduce the physique horror, however early paintings reveals simply how nightmarish the villain might have been. In comparison with these disturbing ideas, Nelson’s remaining on-screen look was noticeably toned down.

The Leader Ought to’ve Remained a Thriller

The Leader’s return to the MCU felt pointless, even with Tim Blake Nelson reprising the function after 17 years. Whereas it lastly addressed a long-dangling thread from The Unbelievable Hulk, the payoff was minimal and lacked emotional or narrative weight. Regardless of his ties to Bruce Banner, inserting Sterns in a Captain America movie (moderately than a Hulk-centric story) felt misplaced and underwhelming. 

The proven fact that Marvel scaled again his design and adjusted it mid-production solely diluted the character’s affect. In the end, the toned-down model paled in comparison with the terrifying idea artwork, making his return really feel like a missed alternative moderately than a triumphant comeback.